Targeting a Broken Heart: Ethical Theories in Social Media Context

This essay, submitted by a student at the School of Computing and Maths at Charles Sturt University, examines the ethical implications of Facebook's practices, particularly its targeting of users experiencing heartbreak. The assignment applies four key ethical theories: utilitarianism, deontology, virtue theory, and contract theory, to analyze the morality of Facebook's data collection and usage. The essay explores how Facebook's actions, such as using personal posts and user data for advertising, might violate ethical principles related to privacy, user well-being, and contractual agreements. It discusses potential breaches of ethical norms within the context of ICT, emphasizing the importance of user safety and the responsible handling of personal information. The conclusion highlights the need for Facebook and other social media platforms to prioritize user privacy, update their policies, and maintain transparency in their operations to build and maintain user trust.

SCHOOL OF COMPUTING AND MATHS, CHARLES STURT UNIVERSITY
Targeting a Broken Heart
Assignment 3: Applying Ethical Theory
Your name
Student name
Word count : 1500

Targeting a Broken Heart
Table of Contents
Introduction...............................................................................................................1
Utilitarianism theory..................................................................................................1
Deontology theory.....................................................................................................2
Virtue theory..............................................................................................................2
Contract theory..........................................................................................................3
Conclusion.................................................................................................................3
References.................................................................................................................5
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Targeting a Broken Heart
Introduction
In this paper the discussion will be made on the blog named as “What mends a Broken heart of
Facebook”. In this it has been analyzed that researchers of the organization have focused on
considering the detail insights which is gathered by analyzing the various problems. This also
taken into consideration that how the moments related to break up has influenced the individual
behavior (Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, 2018).
In this paper, the case related to targeting of broken heart will be taken and according to this case
there are various ethical theories like Utilitarianism, deontology, virtue and contract theory that
will be discussed.
Utilitarianism theory
In this approach it has been seen that act related to utilitarian can be measured according to the
various perceived goods. The Rule utilitarian has been considered according to the various
perceived goods which are considered. In the present case, the rule utilitarian rule can contradict
the overall process of data collection by applying various concepts. This can also tell about how
many people are conducting the ongoing operations of the Facebook as they focus on
considering the same approach. This theory focuses on the moral happiness of the individuals
and also in context to this theory it has been seen that there are principles that approves the
actions which is correct (Peters, 2015).
In reference to this theory, it has been seen that people get rid of various issues which are
concerned to their living and it also makes them sad. According to the case study, the
individuals try to reduce their sadness of breakup by using Facebook and other social platform.
Also people post their status about their breakups on the wall post which enhances their pain.
When people see social media it reminds them of their sadness and also later on it is seen when
people give comments on the post.
In context to ICT ethical norms it has been stated that personal post of the people cannot be used
by the other individuals. But on Facebook, the individuals see the post of other people and give
signal to the companies who give advertisements which are also considered as breaching of the
act (Liang, Zhang, Shen & Lin, 2014). There are many people who consider the source of their
friends and relatives to minimize their sadness by travelling and shopping. It is important for
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Targeting a Broken Heart
Facebook to maintain security of the people so that it can be easy to consider the perception of
others. Also the people should not post their personal information as it can be misused by the
other people easily.
Deontology theory
This theory emphasizes on encourages the individual to choose the best action instead of the act
which is beneficial for them. This theory focuses on creating relations between duty and morality
of the people. On the initial level, it has been seen that people can see many hurdles but they can
easily attain positive results in future. The right act always helps to achieve positive results. If
the acts which give benefit are selected then it can give negative outcome in future. It will also
create serious issues in their lives (Schwartz, 2016).
In the recent scenario, it has been examined that through Facebook people feel good when they
suffer from the pain of breakup. So, in context to this theory it is considered as unethical. So, it
also reflects the overall breaching of the ethical rule. Facebook is also offering the private
information to the companies who are related to marketing and advertising for their own
advantage. It can also be considered as legal offense. There are many organizations who are
offering various offers to the people so that they can attain pleasure. The individual also relies
that it is the issue which is raised in many ways. There is no company who has the right to play
with the emotions of the individual so that they can earn profits. It is considered as an unethical
act (Zhang, Ni, Yang, Liang, Ren & Shen, 2017).
So, Facebook and Social media should emphasize on maintaining the safety of the people by
considering various effective policies. They should not consider any activity which can affect
the belief of the person.
Virtue theory
This theory states that there are less people who focus on the virtual philosophy. Also it has been
seen that people find their happiness from the acts which not ethical. Also it has been stated that
people who are good will lead to good future. It can be attained by focusing on the ethical act.
According to this theory it has been seen that there are various types of virtues related to
courage, honesty and also generosity (Van Hooft, 2014).
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Targeting a Broken Heart
The case which is selected states that Facebook consider the use of the important information of
the individual so that they can achieve some benefit. This is considered as totally unethical and
also this theory states that the act which is correct or not can focus on the previous works. The
Facebook also decodes the personal post of the people every time and this act can be known as
unethical. Facebook is not only considering the personal information of the people but also
focusing on playing with the emotions of the individuals. This theory does not take into
consideration the wrong act on Facebook and also it should not be connected with the social
media. It is important that social media should keep faith in the lives and also it should not focus
on manipulating with the terms and conditions for their own benefits (Hull, 2015).
Contract theory
There are various rules and regulations that should be considered by the people. For instance: if a
person is living in the society that it is important to follow and consider the rules and regulations
of the society. Also the paper work should be considered which is considered as the contract
theory. It has been seen that when the Facebook account is opened then there are various rules
and regulations that should be followed by the individual to proceed (Koszegi, 2014).
So, it has been seen that at the time of manipulating the rules for their own benefit and it can
also cheat the users. So, the act which is taken by the Facebook is considered as unethical. It is
important for the people to maintain their safety on the social media platform. It should not
consider the benefit and also not hamper the relation with the users. It can also affect the entire
market share in the high level of competition. So, it is important for the management team of
Facebook to consider the basic rules and to follow the ethics so that privacy of the users can be
maintained. If privacy of the users is not maintained then it can give negative affect on the entire
image of the company and can also affect the entire success of the company in the competitive
market.
Conclusion
According to the case study, it has been seen that Facebook and other social media platform are
not focusing on securing the safety of their users. They are only thinking to attain benefits for
their own. So, in this context it not ethical and it is also affecting the important information of
the users. The users also trust the Facebook to resolve their personal issues but these social
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Targeting a Broken Heart
media channels are not focusing on their emotions. They are also manipulating the entire rules
which are not at all good for the users. When people open the new Facebook account it has been
seen that their access the information easily and also it pretend that how much secure it is for the
users. They pretend that the information of the users is kept secured but it not right the private
information of the users is leaked for their own benefit. They are not considering the privacy of
the people but there are thinking of their own benefit. So, it is important for the people to have
knowledge of being safe before opening any account on social media platform.
It is important that users should not give their personal information as it can be misused. It is
important for the people to be cautious so that it can be easy to maintain privacy of the
information. It is important for the company as well to focus on updating the privacy policies so
that users can get knowledge of the same and they can focus on minimizing the risk which is
taking place just because of leakage of private data. If the user’s information is leaked then it
can hamper the relation of the people and it can also negatively affect the market share of the
company. So, it is important to focus on considering the rules and policies so that it can be easy
to maintain the privacy of the people and trust can also be enhanced if safety of the users is taken
into consideration.
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Targeting a Broken Heart
References
Hull, G. (2015). Successful failure: what Foucault can teach us about privacy self-management
in a world of Facebook and big data. Ethics and Information Technology, 17(2), 89-101.
Koszegi, B. (2014). Behavioral contract theory. Journal of Economic Literature, 52(4), 1075-
1118.
Liang, X., Zhang, K., Shen, X., & Lin, X. (2014). Security and privacy in mobile social
networks: challenges and solutions. IEEE Wireless Communications, 21(1), 33-41.
Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, (2018), Targeting a Broken Heart, Retrieved from
https://www.scu.edu/ethics/focus-areas/internet-ethics/resources/targeting-a-broken-
heart/ on 16/8/2018
Peters, R. S. (2015). Ethics and Education (Routledge Revivals). Abingdon: Routledge.Retrieved
from: https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781317494782
Schwartz, M. S. (2016). Ethical decision-making theory: An integrated approach. Journal of
Business Ethics, 139(4), 755-776. Retrieved from:
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10551-015-2886-8
Van Hooft, S. (2014). Understanding virtue ethics. Routledge.
Zhang, K., Ni, J., Yang, K., Liang, X., Ren, J., & Shen, X. S. (2017). Security and privacy in
smart city applications: Challenges and solutions. IEEE Communications
Magazine, 55(1), 122-129.
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